Washington: US consumer confidence grew stronger in June, building on a small rise in May as consumers saw improving economic conditions and jobs market, the Conference Board said Tuesday.
The Consumer Confidence Index rose to 101.4 from 94.6 in May, matching its recent peak reading in March.
“Overall, consumers are in considerably better spirits and their renewed optimism could lead to a greater willingness to spend in the near-term,” said Lynn Franco, director of economic indicators at the Conference Board.
More consumers saw better business conditions and an improving jobs market in both the current conditions and in their outlook for the coming six months.
The number of consumers expecting more jobs would be available in the short term jumped to 17.8 per cent in June from 14.7 per cent in May, the highest reading since August 2014.
Income expectations over the coming six months held fairly steady, with the share of those expecting a decline falling a half-point to 10.2 per cent.
“The labour differential, which measures the difference between positive labour market responses and negative ones, narrowed substantially, raising the odds that the unemployment rate fell this month,” said Nate Kelley of Moody’s Analytics.
The Labor Department’s June jobs report on Thursday is expected to show job growth slowed to 230,000 from a surprisingly strong surge of 280,000 jobs in May, and the unemployment rate slipped a tenth point to 5.4 per cent.
